Who are Kamala Harris' parents? Father was a Stanford professor, mom a scientist
Vice President Kamala Harris responded to former President Donald Trump following his false claims about her racial identity Wednesday.
Harris, whose mother is Indian and father is Jamaican, said the American people “deserve a leader who tells the truth,” when Trump said Harris now "wants to be known as Black" in an interview with the National Association of Black Journalists in Chicago on July 31.
Harris made history as the first African American and South Asian American to be elected vice president, USA TODAY reported in 2020.
Here’s what to know about Kamala Harris’ parents.
Who is Kamala Harris’ father?
Donald Harris, 85, is an emeritus professor at Stanford University whose research interests include economic history, macroeconomics, economics of technology, and development economics, according to his Stanford profile. He joined the faculty in 1972 and retired in 1998, according to a description of his professional career. Harris also served as an economic consultant to Jamaica’s government, according to the description. He was a graduate student at the University of California, Berkeley, where he met his future wife and Harris’ mother, Shyamala Gopalan — though the two later divorced — the New York Times reported in 2020.
More: What did Kamala Harris do in California?
Who is Kamala Harris’ mother?
Shyamala Gopalan was a scientist whose work was described as sparking “many advances” in “the role of progesterone and its cellular receptor in breast biology and cancer,” activist organization Breast Cancer Action published in 2009. Gopalan died of colon cancer in 2009, according to NPR. Gopalan had two goals, "to cure breast cancer and to raise her two daughters," Harris said in a social media post in March. Gopalan was also active in the civil rights movement, CNN reported in 2020.
USA TODAY reporter Joey Garrison contributed to this article.
Paris Barraza is a trending reporter covering California news at The Desert Sun. Reach her at pbarraza@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @ParisBarraza.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Who are Kamala Harris' parents amid questions over racial identity